Mason Greenwood’s move from Manchester United to Marseille was contentious for both clubs, particularly when it came to those in the boardroom for the French side
A police report was filed after Marseille executives quarrelled over the decision to sign Mason Greenwood from Manchester United.
Greenwood, 24, left United by mutual consent in the summer of 2023. He departed Old Trafford around seven months after charges of attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm were dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service.
Marseille signed him from the Reds for around £26.7m in July 2024, in a move which divided many in France. The contention around his arrival was not limited to the wider football world, as there were many within the Marseille boardroom who were not happy about the prospect of signing him.
Reports in France have claimed an argument about signing the West Yorkshireman led to a police report being filed. It’s been claimed by La Provence a police report was filed by a club senior executive after sporting director Mehdi Benatia clashed with Cecilia Barontini, who had spent four years within the Stade Velodrome’s human resources team, about signing Greenwood.
Club president Pablo Longoria is understood to have instructed Barontini to take charge of several administrative matters alongside Alban Juster, but she was “opposed” to the idea of buying Greenwood.
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She also expressed disagreement against Marseille’s move for Algeria international defender Youcef Atal, who had been handed an eight-month suspended prison sentence and a €45,000 fine for sharing an anti-Semitic video after attacks were carried out on the Gaza Strip soon after October 7, 2023.
All of these disagreements reportedly culminated in a “heated confrontation” in Longoria’s office, which led to an incident report being compiled by local police forces. In the end, the French heavyweights chose to sign Greenwood, who has made 73 appearances for the Ligue 1 side.
Longoria recently explained his decision making around Greenwood, when he realised there was an opportunity to sign the ex-United academy graduate. He strangely said he ran the idea past his mother, before he made his decision.
He recently told The Telegraph: “For me, it’s correct to speak openly about it. Creating taboos in life is never positive. For us it was a massive market opportunity from a sporting perspective where we analysed, very carefully, what really happened.
“In that case, having done due diligence and having all the information – and this is the first time I speak about this – with all the information I called my mother. And I said ‘what do you think, knowing all the situation?’
“And my mother, who used to work in the prison system in Spain, having a very innovative prison system model in Spain – she was recognised with the medal of the state.
“So I ask her, having all this information, ‘what would you do in my position?’ And she said to me ‘do it’. With all the information.
“It was important because I wanted someone who doesn’t have the incentive of the sport, because the talent is there, that her only incentive is the good of her son. As a man, not as a president. And, for me, it was very important that she said to me, knowing all of this, ‘do it’.”
Longoria went on to say: “I know that there is criticism. I know that the situation, it’s so many times, potentially reputational [damage].
“But, I repeat, if you think that you are taking the right decision, with the right level of information, and from a human perspective as well, because Mason, he’s a good kid, seriously. From that time, I sleep at night.”
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